No matter what form factor you envision (2.5 ″ or M.2) or what generation or type of interface it has (SATA, PCIe), all SSDs may or may not have DRAM. Having this item can dramatically increase the price of the device, so it’s worth knowing if it’s something you’re going to use or if it’s going to be noticed in terms of performance, which is why we let’s say it. you all below.
What is DRAM in an SSD and what is it for?
As we said before, whatever type of SSD you plan to buy, it may or may not have DRAM built-in (in the latter case, they are rightly considered DRAM-Less (which just means “no DRAM”)). It is important that when choosing your next SSD that you tell yourself in this section, because in fact not all manufacturers denote it explicitly and assume that if they do not state that they have DRAM or cache, l user will understand that they are DRAM free. .
SSDs store data in memory cells called NAND Flash; During the life of the SSD, data moves through these cells a bit automatically to ensure that no memory cells are wasted too much due to repeated read / write operations, and therefore, an SSD must keep some kind of card of where the the data is inside the reader.
This is necessary so that when a program is runn ing, playing a game, or when you want to open a file, the SSD controller knows exactly where to find it so that it can be opened quickly. And, as you can already assume, this “card” is located in the DRAM of the player. Obviously, this type of memory is dynamic random access, and it behaves identical to PC RAM
The advantages and disadvantages of integrated DRAM memory
SSDs with DRAM chip offer better performance than SSDs without it. This is because DRAM is much faster than NAND Flash memory and instead of forcing the PC to search the SSD for the relevant data, it will just have to query the DRAM to find it. As a result, the PC will not have to wait long for the SSD to retrieve the data it needs, resulting in a much faster user experience for the end user.
DRAM-free SSDs store the data card directly in the device’s NAND Flash memory, and as we mentioned earlier, this is much slower than DRAM, resulting in slower performance or, more precisely , greater latency for data access. In addition, storing map data directly in NAND Flash memory results in increased wear and tear on the memory cells in the reader, reducing their longevity. This is generally the reason why non-DRAM semiconductor devices have a shorter warranty period.
However, just because DRAM-Less devices have some drawbacks compared to ones that have these chips, it doesn’t mean you should automatically remove them. First, DRAM-free SSDs are almost always cheaper because their production cost is considerably lower, and second, while a DRAM-free SSD has higher access times than the one that does (so in general , their performance is lower), these devices are still quite fast, especially compared to a traditional mechanical hard drive.
There fore, if you intend to upgrade from mechanical hard drive to SSD and your budget is low, you can always go for DRAM-free SSD as you will have a good performance boost and save a lot of money. ‘money on the purchase, because as we explained, they are much cheaper to manufacture and therefore their selling price is also lower.
What type of SSD to buy depending on the use
Considering the fact that SSDs with DRAM have better performance and a longer lifespan, it’s definitely a good idea to look at when purchasing your next SSD and make sure it has a DRAM cache. That said, you also shouldn’t rule out DRAM-free solid-state devices as long as you are aware of the inherent limitations of these that we discussed earlier.
DRAM-free SSDs are cheaper, which means they can be a very inexpensive way to inject new life into an old machine or have high capacity for computers that don’t need storage to use. high performance but large capacity.
In other words, if you want an SSD that is as fast as possible and that lasts a long time, then there is no doubt that you should look for one that has built-in DRAM, but if the use you are going to give the device It’s lightweight, more for mass storage than for running games or apps, so you can save a lot of money by purchasing a DRAM-free SSD as you can find larger capacity drives at a lower price and they will still have a pretty decent performance even as well.
